At the beginning of the nineteenth century, German Orientalism distinguished itself from its French and English counterparts by its precolonial nature. Goethe, introduced to Arabo-Islamic culture at a young age by Herder, developed an attitude of cultural hospitality, founded on the extensive knowledge which he gained from the greatest Orientalists of his day. This attitude – which seems highly prophetic to us today – is most perfectly expressed in the West-östlicher Divan, the result of Goethe’s fascination with Hafez’s work.
